Sr. Maria Bach Thi Tuyen of the Daughters of Our Lady of the Visitation, left, and her mother pay visits to their relatives and neighbors in Phu Cat commune in Hue, Vietnam, during this year's Tet or Lunar New Year festival. Tuyen works in Nha Trang in Khanh Hoa province. (Joachim Pham)
By tradition, the Tet or Lunar New Year festival is a good time for people to live together in unity; express their gratitude to parents, relatives and those who have helped them; pray for ancestors; and visit friends, including followers of other faiths.
On the first day of the new year, which this year was Feb. 12, Catholics in Vietnam pray for national prosperity. On the second day, they pray for their ancestors, and on the third day, for good crops and jobs.
Sisters in Vietnam's central provinces of Quang Tri and Thua Thien Hue return home to welcome the new year, visit relatives and friends, talk about environment protection and religious life, and bring Christian values to others during their nine-day holiday. They returned to their convents Feb. 16.
[Joachim Pham is a GSR correspondent from Vietnam.]
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